The Taming of the Queen is the best work of Philippa Gregory's
that I've read for a very long time. It
is a gripping depiction of the marriage of Katherine Parr to Henry the Eighth –
she was his last wife and the only one to survive him.
The
author's note makes it clear that it is mostly based closely on the history
with the exception of one important incident between Katherine and Henry (which
relates to the book title) which is fictional.
And in fact that was the only part of the book that didn't ring quite
true for me.
The famous
painting of the King, Queen and his 3 children is dealt with
magnificently. I had forgotten that the
Queen sat for the portrait unaware until it was unveiled that the face of Jane
Seymour was painted instead of her own!
Interesting review. I've read several of Gregory's books and enjoyed them and this period of history is among my favorite periods to read about, so I think I'll be adding this one to my TBR list!
ReplyDeleteI listened to an interview on the radio with PG - waiting for the book to arrive in my local library!
ReplyDelete'Sounds like a great read! -Marci @ Stone Cottage Adventures
ReplyDeleteI've been considering this book for my next read! Thanks for the review :)
ReplyDeleteI agree, I loved this book!!
ReplyDelete